Starbucks cups are brewing up controversy

Last week Starbucks introduced their 2015 holiday cup design; a simple red cup. To most, the design seems simple, but a surprising amount of people see this red cup as a hate crime against Christianity.

In past years, Starbucks has introduced holiday cups with snowmen, snowflakes, and similar patterns. This year, the cups have been made a simple red.

When asked about the meaning behind the design of the plain cups, Jeffrey Fields, Starbucks’ vice president of Design and Content said, “This year we wanted to usher in the holidays with a purity of design that welcomes all of our stories…we are embracing the simplicity and quietness of it.”

After the announcement of the new cups, some Christians immediately lashed out, saying that Starbucks was trying to discriminate against Christianity. Many people used Twitter to send their message to Starbucks, tweeting the large company that they were upset. Some have even started telling the Starbucks baristas that their names are “Merry Christmas!” so they are forced to write a very Christmas-related phrase on the cup.

Although Starbucks did simplify the winter cups in order to be more religiously diverse, one could easily argue that the past designs of snowflakes and other generally wintery things are not specifically Christian either, so there is no real reason for certain Christians to be angry now. It is also quite odd that Starbucks made a statement about how different the red cups are, since in reality they are not a bold statement or amazing new breakthrough.

Whether you are angry about the red cups or not, it’s safe to say that everybody should put down their torches and pitchforks and try to enjoy the holiday season instead of arguing about coffee cups.